Okay so this weeks is up early and looks ugly. There will be changes to teams that I pick up usually at the last minute before I post that I won't have in this weekend. This weekend is a bartending gig for a party of friends. I do not expect to be sober Saturday night into Sunday morning so I figured early is better that drunken jibberish you may get at the last minute. Have a good weekend all.


Last week was a tough week. Between injuries, players and teams not performing up to snuff I feel I had a tougher week. I picked 3 winners of 5 matches. Players picks was 23 and 12. Not on par to what I go for.

Bye Week Teams.
Falcons.
Bears.
Packers.
Jets.
Buccaneers.
Raiders.

Injuries

Mike Tolbert RB (Diego).
(Hamstring/Hand) He looks questionable. Look for other options cause if he plays it may be limited.

Sam Bradford QB (Rams)
(Ankle). Deemed out for week 8.

Felix Jones RB (Dal)
(Ankle) Deemed out for week 8.

Peyton Hillis RB (Clev)
(Hamstring) Day to day, and with them erring on caution maybe expect him to sit.

Jahvid Best RB (Det)
(Concussion). Deemed out for week 8.


Team Moves.

Azoic Defenders.
Dropped Packers and picked up Felix Jones.
Not a bad move though now when Jones gets back he may have to split more time with DeMarco Murray considering how well he did.

Paint Huffing Warriors.
Dropped Steve Slaton and picked up Mike Tolbert.
The drop is good . Slaton is a non factor. Tolbert is a good pick up when healthy. Question is this week if he will play.

Cats HateHitler.
Dropped Pierre Thomas and picked up Micheal Jenkins.
Okay move if you need a WR. Jenkins did well with a rookie QB at the helm. It could pan out or be a flop. Thomas did well last week and looks to have a good match this week.

Cats HateHitler.
Dropped Dallas Clark and picked up Fred Davis.
Not a bad pick up. Davis looks to be having good scores as long as Cooley is out. Dallas Clark has had a rough season with the Colts being beat up this season.

Voodoo Children.
Dropped Tim Hightower and picked up Benjarvus Grenn-Ellis.
Hightower is injured and his coach doesn't seem to know exactly who he wants in the back field. Green -Ells seems to be a steady RB. Not a high scoring one but will get needed points on your board.

Winter Nom Noms.
Dropped Rex Grossman and picked up Andy Dalton.
Good move. Grossman seems to be out for the moment as QB never mind being sick. Dalton a shown that he is a good pick up but is still a rookie so don't rely on him solely for a win.

Voodoo Children.
Dropped Benjamin Watson and picked up Jake Ballard.
Watson could be out with a concussion. Ballard is a good pick up this week facing the Dolphins.

Mallers DA Winna
Dropped Chad Ochocinco and picked up Plaxico Burress.
The drop is a good move since he has not been producing. Burress had a good game last week and has showed that Sanchez is comfortable throwing to him.

Mallers DA Winna.
Dropped Falcons and picked up Packers.
Kinda of a push as defenses. Both haven't been spectacular this season.

Paint Huffing Warriors.
Dropped Nick Folk and picked up Olindo Mare.
Folk is on bye. Mare is as good as any other kicker.

Azoic Defenders.
Dropped Earnest Graham and picked up Ryan Torain.
Graham is injured and out for the season. Torain is not the best pick up but with Hightower out he will get some time with the ball.

Get to Da Choppa!
Dropped Lance Moore and picked up Reggie Wayne.
Good pick up. Moore hasn't done much this season. Wayne isn't at his best without Manning but still gets needed points on the board.

Paint Huffing Warriors.
Dropped Bengals defense and picked up Pierre Thomas.
Not a bad pick up. Thomas is not sharing time with Ingram since he is out with an injury, Nothing big on points but he does well.

Mallers Da Winna
Dropped Santana Moss and picked up Deion Branch.
Branch does some points and it is better to Moss's none since he is out.

Voodoo Children.
Picked up Mike Nugent.
A kicker is a kicker. He has had a solid season so far.




Paint Huffing Warriors (TCM Revolver) vs Azoic Defenders (GodofInsanity)

Matt Shaub vs Tom Brady.
Tough call here in my opinion. Both passers face pretty good pass rushes. The Steelers are #1 against the pass. With that I like Shaub here. I know I am going against Brady and he may make me eat my words. But he does face a stout pass rush and a proven secondary. They will make him work hard for his pay. Shaub faces the Jaguars, who last week surprised us with sacking the Ravens. That's not enough for me to flop over to them but I will admit Shaub will have to earn his pay as well, but I do not think he will have to work as hard. Add in that Owen Daniels and Arian Foster are 2 great short pass receivers and he lines up for this slot easily.

Ben Roethlisberger vs Joe Flacco.
I am going to have to go with Big Ben for this slot. The Patriots are one of the worst pass defenses in the league. With a running game that seems to stall at best, he should have a good day. Add in coming off a spectacular week and he looks to pick apart the Patriots. Flacco faces the Cardinals. That alone should let him take this slot. But after the Jaguars put a stop to him and the Ravens last week, betting money pulls away from Flacco and we will see how his day goes. After last week I cannot even say Ray Rice will own the day there.

Mike Tolbert vs Adrian Peterson.
I like Peterson here. Last week he showed why he is the NFL's best running back in the game. The Packers were unable to stop him. Do not expect Carolina to be able to stop him either. They will put up what they can and be prepared, but do not think an undefeated Packers team was not prepared for him. Tolbert will be playing injured and sharing time with Ryan Matthews. This severely hurts his prospects for a good game and hurts his fantasy value greatly.

Wes Welker vs Peyton Hillis.
Hillis is dealing with a hurt hamstring and more than likely will not play. Welker takes this slot easily. He faces the Steelers #1 pass defense this weekend. He is usually unstoppable and this weekend should be no different. Expect lower numbers but he will have a good game.

Dwayne Bowe vs Anquan Boldin
I like Boldin here. I think he faces a weaker secondary and that will be enough for his star to shine this week after the tough week he had last weekend. Bowe may have a great game, but I expect the Chargers to do what they can to shut his game down cutting heavily into his fantasy value.

Rob Gronkowski vs Jason Witten
I like Witten. I think even though he has been not as involved in the Cowboy's offense, this week should be a week they bring him in heavier. With that Gronkowski will take this slot. Welker will have a lot of attention allowing him to have more opportunities to get open.

Lions vs Cowboys
I like the lions here. They face a Broncos offense that on has a young QB going for them. It won't be hard for this toughened defense to find a way to stop the Broncos. The Cowboys face the Eagles and should have a good day against an offense that has not owned up to the hype we expected this season. The only thing placing the Cowboys down here is the Eagles have had a week to rest and may come out with a vengeance.

It looks as if Warriors will continue to be undefeated.

Get to Da Choppa! (Joosbawx) vs Mallers Da Winna (COsurvivor)

Phillip Rivers vs Eli Manning.
I like Manning here. He faces the Dolphins who by face I think is the worst team in the league. He will have a great day as most of his targets are healthy. Not much of a downside for him. Hell he may even remember to throw to his own team most of the day. Phillip Rivers had a horrible game earlier this season against the Chiefs. Add in he seems to forget what color jerseys his team is wearing, this could turn into a why did I play him kinda day.

Tim Tebow vs Matt Hasselback.
I like Hasselback here. He faces the Colts and they have been unable to stop any team yet this season. He may have the best game of this season here. Tebow in on a single dimension offense. If the Lions concentrate on stopping his running ability, he won't have any fantasy value at all.

Maurice Jones-Drew vs Arian Foster.
the Jaguars worked hard to stop Ray Rice last week and succeeded. This week Foster faces them. I do not think they have 2 weeks worth of stopping the run as solidly as they did in them. Foster takes this slot. The Jags will have to work harder to stop the pass allowing him to have more open routes. MJD should do well also. Do not expect big numbers from him but he will get some points on you board.

Steve Johnson vs Darren Sproles.
I like Sproles here. He matches up well against the Rams who do not remember how to stop the run. Brees likes to throw so do not expect big yards but a TD is not unfathomable either. Johnson has been having a bad 3 weeks. Even rested this week he faces a good Redskins secondary. If he is not 100% then he may be up for a tough weekend.

Miles Austin vs ???.
This is Austin's slot. Last week may have been a slow week but do not expect that again. There will be more passes thrown to him against this weak pass defense the Rams have as well as a large running game for Dallas.

Aaron Hernandez vs Greg Olsen.
I like Hernandez here. He is part of one of the few teams that can make 2 TE's have good games. He has more chances to do well against the Steelers who will be working hard to keep Brady's deep threat at bay, trying to keep him contained. Olsen has seen a change in direction for him and his team. Even with being in step well with Cam Newton, Jeremy Shockey has come in and started to take looks away from him hurting his fantasy value. Add in a case of turf toe and his week may be okay at best.

Redskins vs Patriots.
Both teams are going to have real tough weeks. The Patriots cannot stop the pass and the Redskins cannot stop the rush. I think defensively the Redskins will come out on top but not by much. No big points for either of these teams.

I think Mallers Da Winna may eek out a win here.


Cats HateHitler (Mem) vs Clear Sights (Clear Sights)

Alex Smith vs Mark Sanchez.
Sanchez is on bye. Alex Smith faces the 3rd best pass defense in the league. He gets this slot by default and nothing more. The 49ers game is more in defense and on the ground this year.

John Beck vs ???.
Beck may have done well last week in his premier at QB, but with the loss of Moss for 6 weeks, his outlook is very dim. With injuries taking a toll on his team, he should be a last option if you have any other.

Jonathon Stewart vs Chris Johnson.
I am going to go with Johnson for one reason and one reason only. He faces the Colts with nearly the worse rush defense in the league. Beyond that I wouldn't put my money on him if he was the only horse in the race. Stewart is set up to get some more goal line work, but the weight of that still falls to there QB/RB Cam Newton. If he could throw a pass to himself I am sure Newton would do that as well.

DeMarco Murray vs DeSean Jackson.
I will say holy shit to Murray and he takes this slot. With Felix Jones out still and the way he busted out last week Murray will have a great day again against the Rams. He is a break out star and will continue to be so as long as Jones sits out with his injury. Jackson should have a good game, but mix his up and down stats with being opposite Murray, he will not take this slot.

Calvin Johnson vs Hakeem Nicks.
Johnson takes this slot. Better defenses than Denver have not been able to stop him. Do not expect it to start here. Nicks was a tough choice here. He faces Miami and that could almost let me pick him. But I like the capabilities and the mix of Stafford throwing to Johnson compared to Manning throwing to Nicks here.

Fred Davis vs Jermicheal Finley.
Finley is on bye. Davis takes this slot. Not just by default. He has turned out to be a good TE, and a surprise break out star to many. Add in the injuries to his team making him a healthy target and a good match up this week makes it a tough pick to get by him for this slot.

Steelers vs Saints.
Rarely will you see me say I like the Saints as a defense. Especially matching up against the Steelers in this slot. But this week you see it. This is the Saints slot. The face a weak and injured Rams offense. The Steelers have the superior defense here but face the Patriots who will make them earn there pay and has every chance to score multiple time driving the defensive score down.

This is easily Cats HateHitler match to win.

Voodoo Children (Nikvoodoo) vs Team D3ad (7oddisdead)

Drew Brees vs Kevin Kolb.
Brees takes this slot with ease. How could I go against him. He has over 300 yards passing in every game this season so far. He has 18 touchdowns so far with TD's in every game. Add in he is up against the Rams who haven't really done well at all stopping the pass this season. No, Brees has this spot all taken care of. Kolb on the other hand is an almost opposite. He has only broken the 300 yard plane once this season. He has 7 TD's this season so far. And he faces the Ravens who will be out for payback after last week and even then they held the Jaguars to field goals only.

Cam Newton vs Jason Campbell.
Campbell is out due to a broken collarbone. Cam Newton takes this slot easily as well. He will have to throw the ball often to keep up with the Vikings ground attack. He is not afraid to throw the ball and when things get dicey he can move in and out of the pocket with ease. They may lose the game but Newton will still have a good day.

Fred Jackson vs Ray Rice.
This is a tough match up. Both of these guys have good games ahead of them this weekend. Jackson will run through and over the Redskins with ease. They will concentrate on the passing game opening up a lot of room for him on the ground. Rice is going to come back with a vengeance this week after being shut down last weekend by the Jaguars. The Cardinals do not have a rush defense so expect him to be off the charts. Add in he is good at receiving and that is why he will take this slot this round.

Andre Johnson vs Steven Jackson.
I like Johnson if he returns to play this week. But that is not guaranteed. So I am going to go with Jackson here. He may be the only offense capable for the Rams if the passing game is shut down as expected. The thing is that the passing game is pretty horrible right now there, so that may leave defense enough to shut his game down as well.

Dez Bryant vs Roddy White.
White is on bye. I like Bryant's match up this week. He should be able to get open as Philly will do what they can to stop the Dallas rushing game that Murray plowed over the Rams with last week. This is Bryant's slot.

Jake Ballard vs Antonio Gates.
Tough call. Gates is always a possibility to sit out due to his foot. Besides that it looks like he may be back on track an playing again as long as he does not have any set backs with his foot. He takes this slot. Ballard faces the Dolphins and he may do well with that but I feel Gates will have the better week.

Ravens vs Bears.
Bears are on bye. I like the Ravens match up against the Cardinals. I think after the game they had last week they come out looking for blood. And note this as well. Last week they lost 12 to 7. The Jaguars were only able to make field goals. The Ravens defense still held even as there offense last week fell on there face.

Looks like Voodoo Children will get this win.


Winter Nom Noms (Mrscott101) vs Team Devil Dogs (USMCludwig)

Tony Romo vs Micheal Vick.
I like both of these guys as they face off. I am going to lean on Romo here though. He has an explosive rushing game and that may open up some room for him to throw as the Eagles scramble to make sure Murray does not do another 252 yard rushing day against them. Vick should do well if they have done some work to make sure he has better protection as he looks to throw. He may be hurried more often so this slot slips to Romo.

Andy Dalton vs Tarvaris Jackson.
I like Dalton here. He will have to go to the air a bit more considering his main RB is out on suspension. He has done well surprisingly this season. He faces the Seahawks who may be up to putting the stop on him but maybe not. Jackson faces the Bengals who have better pass defense than his own team. He could have a good day but I expect Dalton to have a better game.

Ryan Matthews vs Marshawn Lynch.
I like Matthews here. There is a question if Lynch will play and if he does just how effective he will be. Matthews should take this slot. He is splitting time with Mike Tolbert so do not expect any explosive numbers.

Victor Cruz vs Vincent Jackson.
I have to go with Jackson here. I think he will have a decent game against the Chiefs depending though on how well his QB does this game. Cruz was a large fantasy factor with Manningham out with an injury. Now that Manningham is back in, we have seen a not surprising drop in work for Cruz. He is out there but 3rd man down on the pole means less looks his way.

A.J. Green vs Larry Fitzgerald.
I think I am going to take Green here for this slot. Cedric Benson is out on suspension so expect Colt McCoy to throw often and he will be looking for his #1 target a lot this weekend. Fitzgerald is going to be targeted often and yes the Ravens defense may have had some tough games against fast receivers but, and this is a big but, I do not think his QB Kevin Kolb is ready for the pass rush that will be on him through the whole game.

Owen Daniels vs Jimmy Graham.
I like Daniels just not for this slot. He should have a real good game against the Jaguars who have a real tough time covering TE's who go underneath. But Graham is up against the Rams who have a tough time covering everything. Add in Brees is having an awesome season and really likes to target Graham who has come away with 6 100 yard games so far this season. This is his slot with no question.

49ers vs Texans.
Both of these teams have real good match ups that favor them. I am going to go with the Texans here with a coin flip. They have had some real good games and this week face a Jaguars offense that couldn't make to the end zone once last week for 6. the 49ers face a broken and injured Browns so expect them to give the Texans a run for there money.

This is going to be a fight it looks like but Winter Nom Noms will come out ahead and take this match.